Azerbaijan: Presidential Election
Amid reports of traditional folk music and prizes awaiting voters at polling stations, the Organization for Security & Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has issued a press release on yesterday’s presidential election in Azerbaijan. With the main opposition parties boycotting the vote, the incumbent, Ilham Aliyev, cruised comfortably to a second term in office while international observers decried the lack of a real choice.
BAKU, 16 October 2008 - Yesterday’s presidential election in Azerbaijan marked considerable progress, but did not meet all of the country’s international commitments, observers from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and the European Parliament (EP) concluded in a joint statement published today.
The election was conducted in a peaceful manner, but was characterized by a lack of robust competition and vibrant political discourse facilitated by the media, and thus did not reflect all principles of a meaningful and pluralistic democratic election. Regrettably, some opposition parties boycotted the election, citing longstanding obstacles. This further limited the scope for meaningful choice for the electorate.
[…]
While the voting day can be generally viewed positively and described as marking considerable progress, election observation is done against a broader background of human rights, democracy and the rule of law. In this connection, the issue of freedom of the media in Azerbaijan remains a source of further concern,” said Andres Herkel, Head of the PACE delegation.
“According to our observations on election day, the elections were well prepared and largely carried out smoothly. However, a lack of genuine competition, due to the boycott of major opposition parties, and the absence of a real campaign have to be deeply deplored,” said Marie Anne Isler Beguin, Head of the EP delegation.
- Published:
- 10.16.08 / 7pm by Onnik
- Category:
- Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan Presidential Election 2008, Blogs, Democracy, Election Day, News Briefs, Voting
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